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Leadership conference in Washington
Out for a Change
Page 7
Page 14
/i.a,sPOINT
Embracing men
Page 10
Vol. 1, No. 43
March
April 4. 1993
A star
studded
night
P-V" _ M
m/AC
Glitz and glamour at this year�s AIDS benefit
by Rachel Cold
Although some participants likened it jokingly to a cattle chute, the attendees of the Hollywood 8 fundraiser were laughing as they jostled their way into the Orpheum, on Monday, March 27. Participants were given name tags with the names of movie and television stars and the phrase �appearing tonite only as...� leading to a blank space in which no one wrote their real name.
Approximately 2,650 people attended the event, bringing in an amount that organizer Scott Mayer placed at �approaching $100,000.�
While shuffling along in the shoulder-to-shoulder melee, those nearer the outside were given the option
of sampling a variety of drinks and deserts set up on tables along the hallway. Starbucks set up two booths just inside the door, with Absolut Vodka and Godiva Liquor up around the first bend. Past the drinks came table after table of chocolate cake slices, brownies, cheesecake, and tarts, giving way eventually to the inedibles of the silent auction.
The silent auction contained everything from massages to travel packages, a handmade bowl with the likeness of Marilyn Monroe, a rainbow light projector, a Mapplethorpe print, and far to many more to name.
Continued on page 2
Gay man found dead in apartment
Death appears to have been natural
by Rachel Gold
The second day that Roger Sockness failed to show up for work, a concerned co-worker called his mother to ask if she knew his whereabouts. This prompted a family member to visit Sockness� apartment building and ask the caretaker to unlock the door to his
apartment. Sockness was found dead in his apartment on Thursday, March 23.
�I saw him on Monday, he was fine, we talked,� said a co-worker of Sockness� from the Nankin, where he worked as bar manager. He had been employed there since 1988.
Sockness� co-worker described him as �very loyal and very honest... everyone liked him, he would do anything for you.� She said, �he had a
lot of friends here.�
The coroner�s office is treating the death as the result of natural causes. Sockness was found to have had a brain aneurysm, which is presumed to be the cause of death. Minor tests remain before the coroner makes a final report, but at present there is no suspicion of foul play.
A memorial service for Roger Sockness was held Tuesday, March 28, with the funeral the following day.
Bisexual conference opens some eyes
by J. Wallner
Last fall organizers of an annual spring bisexual conference threw themselves deep into discussions about classism, racism, sexism and other oppressions. Having their 1995 conference theme focusing on empowering the bisexual community to overcome various oppressions, it only made sense for organizers to learn as much as possible about other societal oppressions.
Ensuing conversations began opening organizer�s eyes and ears, resulting in the realization that they too had inadvertently participated in oppression. Despite previous efforts to increase attendance from people of color, different age groups and sexes, conference attenders always seemed to fall into the same age group, race and gender.
But with their recent realization, the Bisexual Empowerment Conference: A United Supportive Experience (Because) committee began pursuing changes to breakthrough existing barriers that have had a strong hold on the conference and prevented it from growing in a direction it wanted.
�Because of conference work, our community lacked some diversity and some forthright addressing of marginalization and diversity issues,� said Linae Enockson, who is one of the 10 Because committee members and who has spent the past 10 years actively working against oppressions in society.
For some reason, the bisexual group became unifor-mally white, with a specific age group, and included members with abilities - with a few exceptions.
Conference organizers, comprised of individuals from various groups including Bi Women and Friends, University Lesbians and Bisexual Women, University Bi and Transgender Community and BiNet Midwest, put forth a united effort to reflect what they had learned as individuals and as a committee last fall. Their hope - to become a conference catering to the needs of the bisexual community.
The biggest change came in restructuring the committee itself.
�I came into the committee early in September,� Enockson said. �And based on community concessions with what the community kept saying it needed� she pushed for Because volunteer leaders to address such things including marginalization, discrimination, access abilities and other discriminations.
Through major discussions, the core leadership of the bisexual community saw the effects of marginalization, discrimination and access abilities at previous Because conferences, even though it went against what they had hoped.
The committee embarked on an extensive advertising campaign through flyers and newspaper advertisements to gather input from the larger bisexual community.
Against the committees hopes, responses were few.
So with little community input, the committee �decided not to have a hierarchy system� in the leadership of the planning committee.
Contnued on page 3
Gay medical group issues groundbreaking report on HIV prevention
San Francisco - A report released today by the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA) warns that massive numbers of gay, bisexual and lesbian Americans and Canadians will become newly infected with the HIV virus unless dramatic new steps are taken.
Entitled, �The Silent Crisis: Ongoing HIV Infections Among Gay Men, Bisexuals and Lesbians at Risk,� the 108-page report presents the results of the first broad-based summit of scholars and community leaders ever convened to address prevention in the gay community. Alarmingly, the report cites a study projecting that a majority of young, HIV-negative gay and bisexual men in the U.S. will eventually become infected.
According to summit co-chair and GLMA Executive Director Benjamin Schatz, the goal of the report is to help re-awaken the community to the severity of new infections and to place the issue at the top of community and national agendas. �Despite the poplu-ar perception that AIDS has moved out of the gay community and that gay men are somehow taken care of, nothing could be farther from the truth. Unless serious action is taken, far more gay men will become infected in the years to come than have been infected to date,� he said.
The report identifies key themes and urgent priorities that emerged from the summit:
� The rate of new infections among gay and bisexual men is staggering, particularly among men of color and youth; reversing this must be- but has-n�t been- a top priority for gay and AIDS groups.
� Prevention efforts must address profound emotional/psychological issues affecting HIV-negative gay and bisexual men that may be causing them to rik their lives.
� Prevention must be redefined; the emphasis should shift from disseminating facts to helping people explore their sexual motivations and
priorities.
� Building stronger gay/les-bian/bisexual communities and combating homophobia are essential to fighting the spread of AIDS in these populations.
� HIV is a lesbian issue: there are disturbingly high rates of HIV among certain populations of lesbian and bisexual women.
� More and better research and evaluation is needed; existing prevention programs have too often failed to incorporate research or undergo meaningful evaluation.
� Gay and lesbian communities must be willing to critically re-examine their own norms.
� Gays, bisexuals and lesbians in differing racial, regional, and age populations have different prevention needs and need resources to design their own prevention strategies.
�The gay community and AIDS organizations must start demanding adequate prevention resources for gay and bisexual men,� said Schatz. He described as �tragic, but typical� a study showing that only 9% of prevention dollars in California target gay and bisexual men even though nearly 80% of the AIDS cases in the state have taken place among this population. �We�ve been afraid to ask for what we deserve: AIDS organizations don�t want to appear too focused on AIDS,� noted Schatz. �As a result, gay HIV prevention issues have often fallen through the cracks.�
Summit co-chair Alvin Novick, MD, added that the report has an equally important goal: redefining prevention. �For prevention to be effective in 1995, we must understand the context of the lives of gay and bisexual men and what we are feeling. While some of us still need basic information about condoms and safer sex, more of us need help in finding the motivation to incorporate what we already know into our lives,� noted
Continued on page IS

Leadership conference in Washington
Out for a Change
Page 7
Page 14
/i.a,sPOINT
Embracing men
Page 10
Vol. 1, No. 43
March
April 4. 1993
A star
studded
night
P-V" _ M
m/AC
Glitz and glamour at this year�s AIDS benefit
by Rachel Cold
Although some participants likened it jokingly to a cattle chute, the attendees of the Hollywood 8 fundraiser were laughing as they jostled their way into the Orpheum, on Monday, March 27. Participants were given name tags with the names of movie and television stars and the phrase �appearing tonite only as...� leading to a blank space in which no one wrote their real name.
Approximately 2,650 people attended the event, bringing in an amount that organizer Scott Mayer placed at �approaching $100,000.�
While shuffling along in the shoulder-to-shoulder melee, those nearer the outside were given the option
of sampling a variety of drinks and deserts set up on tables along the hallway. Starbucks set up two booths just inside the door, with Absolut Vodka and Godiva Liquor up around the first bend. Past the drinks came table after table of chocolate cake slices, brownies, cheesecake, and tarts, giving way eventually to the inedibles of the silent auction.
The silent auction contained everything from massages to travel packages, a handmade bowl with the likeness of Marilyn Monroe, a rainbow light projector, a Mapplethorpe print, and far to many more to name.
Continued on page 2
Gay man found dead in apartment
Death appears to have been natural
by Rachel Gold
The second day that Roger Sockness failed to show up for work, a concerned co-worker called his mother to ask if she knew his whereabouts. This prompted a family member to visit Sockness� apartment building and ask the caretaker to unlock the door to his
apartment. Sockness was found dead in his apartment on Thursday, March 23.
�I saw him on Monday, he was fine, we talked,� said a co-worker of Sockness� from the Nankin, where he worked as bar manager. He had been employed there since 1988.
Sockness� co-worker described him as �very loyal and very honest... everyone liked him, he would do anything for you.� She said, �he had a
lot of friends here.�
The coroner�s office is treating the death as the result of natural causes. Sockness was found to have had a brain aneurysm, which is presumed to be the cause of death. Minor tests remain before the coroner makes a final report, but at present there is no suspicion of foul play.
A memorial service for Roger Sockness was held Tuesday, March 28, with the funeral the following day.
Bisexual conference opens some eyes
by J. Wallner
Last fall organizers of an annual spring bisexual conference threw themselves deep into discussions about classism, racism, sexism and other oppressions. Having their 1995 conference theme focusing on empowering the bisexual community to overcome various oppressions, it only made sense for organizers to learn as much as possible about other societal oppressions.
Ensuing conversations began opening organizer�s eyes and ears, resulting in the realization that they too had inadvertently participated in oppression. Despite previous efforts to increase attendance from people of color, different age groups and sexes, conference attenders always seemed to fall into the same age group, race and gender.
But with their recent realization, the Bisexual Empowerment Conference: A United Supportive Experience (Because) committee began pursuing changes to breakthrough existing barriers that have had a strong hold on the conference and prevented it from growing in a direction it wanted.
�Because of conference work, our community lacked some diversity and some forthright addressing of marginalization and diversity issues,� said Linae Enockson, who is one of the 10 Because committee members and who has spent the past 10 years actively working against oppressions in society.
For some reason, the bisexual group became unifor-mally white, with a specific age group, and included members with abilities - with a few exceptions.
Conference organizers, comprised of individuals from various groups including Bi Women and Friends, University Lesbians and Bisexual Women, University Bi and Transgender Community and BiNet Midwest, put forth a united effort to reflect what they had learned as individuals and as a committee last fall. Their hope - to become a conference catering to the needs of the bisexual community.
The biggest change came in restructuring the committee itself.
�I came into the committee early in September,� Enockson said. �And based on community concessions with what the community kept saying it needed� she pushed for Because volunteer leaders to address such things including marginalization, discrimination, access abilities and other discriminations.
Through major discussions, the core leadership of the bisexual community saw the effects of marginalization, discrimination and access abilities at previous Because conferences, even though it went against what they had hoped.
The committee embarked on an extensive advertising campaign through flyers and newspaper advertisements to gather input from the larger bisexual community.
Against the committees hopes, responses were few.
So with little community input, the committee �decided not to have a hierarchy system� in the leadership of the planning committee.
Contnued on page 3
Gay medical group issues groundbreaking report on HIV prevention
San Francisco - A report released today by the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA) warns that massive numbers of gay, bisexual and lesbian Americans and Canadians will become newly infected with the HIV virus unless dramatic new steps are taken.
Entitled, �The Silent Crisis: Ongoing HIV Infections Among Gay Men, Bisexuals and Lesbians at Risk,� the 108-page report presents the results of the first broad-based summit of scholars and community leaders ever convened to address prevention in the gay community. Alarmingly, the report cites a study projecting that a majority of young, HIV-negative gay and bisexual men in the U.S. will eventually become infected.
According to summit co-chair and GLMA Executive Director Benjamin Schatz, the goal of the report is to help re-awaken the community to the severity of new infections and to place the issue at the top of community and national agendas. �Despite the poplu-ar perception that AIDS has moved out of the gay community and that gay men are somehow taken care of, nothing could be farther from the truth. Unless serious action is taken, far more gay men will become infected in the years to come than have been infected to date,� he said.
The report identifies key themes and urgent priorities that emerged from the summit:
� The rate of new infections among gay and bisexual men is staggering, particularly among men of color and youth; reversing this must be- but has-n�t been- a top priority for gay and AIDS groups.
� Prevention efforts must address profound emotional/psychological issues affecting HIV-negative gay and bisexual men that may be causing them to rik their lives.
� Prevention must be redefined; the emphasis should shift from disseminating facts to helping people explore their sexual motivations and
priorities.
� Building stronger gay/les-bian/bisexual communities and combating homophobia are essential to fighting the spread of AIDS in these populations.
� HIV is a lesbian issue: there are disturbingly high rates of HIV among certain populations of lesbian and bisexual women.
� More and better research and evaluation is needed; existing prevention programs have too often failed to incorporate research or undergo meaningful evaluation.
� Gay and lesbian communities must be willing to critically re-examine their own norms.
� Gays, bisexuals and lesbians in differing racial, regional, and age populations have different prevention needs and need resources to design their own prevention strategies.
�The gay community and AIDS organizations must start demanding adequate prevention resources for gay and bisexual men,� said Schatz. He described as �tragic, but typical� a study showing that only 9% of prevention dollars in California target gay and bisexual men even though nearly 80% of the AIDS cases in the state have taken place among this population. �We�ve been afraid to ask for what we deserve: AIDS organizations don�t want to appear too focused on AIDS,� noted Schatz. �As a result, gay HIV prevention issues have often fallen through the cracks.�
Summit co-chair Alvin Novick, MD, added that the report has an equally important goal: redefining prevention. �For prevention to be effective in 1995, we must understand the context of the lives of gay and bisexual men and what we are feeling. While some of us still need basic information about condoms and safer sex, more of us need help in finding the motivation to incorporate what we already know into our lives,� noted
Continued on page IS